Hospital-bed.



H. L. PIPER & W. H. FOX.

HosPl'TAL BED.

Application med 1km. 1, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

I No. 638,755. Patented Dec. I2, |899. x

No. 638,755. Patented Dec. I2, $99. H. L. PIPER-6,. W. H. FOX. HOSPITALBED.

(Application led Max. 1, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2,

I `Il u 3 G ll'vmll. MII] l" vih/wss e s f7 wwo/'s IINTTED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

HARRY L. PIPER AND VILLIAM H. FOX, OF TORONTO, CANADA.

HOSPITAL-BED.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 638,755, dated December12, 1899.

Application filed March l, 1899. Serial No. 707,357. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom. it" may concern,.-

Be it known that we, HARRY L. PIPER and WILLIAiVH. Fox, subjects of theQueen of Great Britain, residing in the city of Toronto, in the countyof York and Province of Ontario, Canada, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Hospital-Beds; and we hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements inhospital-beds, and relates more particularly to an attachment to the bedby means of which the patient can be raised or lowered for sanitary orother purposes with-out disturbing his position or causing himanyinconvenience or pain; and the invention consists, essentially, ofproviding the bed with a rigid stretcher-frame fitted around themattress and having a bottom of canvas or other textile-fabric materialfitted with a central opening and a mechanism to raise and lower thestretcher-frame and hold itin any elevated position, as hereinafter morefully set forth, and more particularly pointed out in the claim.`

In the drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal section of the bed, showingthe relative positions of the various parts, the stretcher-frame in thisview being in its lowered position. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing thestretcherframe in its elevated position. Fig. 3 is a transversesectional View of the hospital-bed. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of thebed with the mattress and wire springs removed to illustrate themechanism for raising and lowering the stretcher-frame.

Like letters of reference refer to like part-s throughout thespecification and drawings.

A A represent the sides, B the head, and C the foot, of the bed.

D represents a shaft journaled in the middle of the sides A A. Mountedupon the shaft D contiguous to the inner face of one of the sides A is aratchet-wheel E, and pivoted to the inner face of the said side, abovethe ratchet-wheel E, is a ratchet-dog F, which engages the teeth of theratchet-wheel E and prevents its reverse rotation.

G represents a substantially rectangular stretcher-frame consisting oftwo ends g g and two sides g g', rigidly united. The stretcherframe Gwhen the parts of the hospital-bed are assembled surrounds the mattressH. Connected to each of the sides g g contiguous to the ends are twobrackets I I', respectively, and contained in the brackets I I are theupper ends of the standards J J', respectively.

Connected to the lower end of each of the standards J J is a pulley KK', respectively, and connected to the inner face of each of the sides AA are two pulleys L L', respectively, located one on each side of theshaft D.

The ends of each side A are provided with eyes or loops M M',respectively. Attached to the loop M is a cord or chain O, which passesaround the pulleys K and L and is wound on the shaft D, and attached tothe eye or loop M is a cord or chain O', which passes around the pulleysK and L and is wound on the shaft D.

Fastened to the sides g g and ends g g of the stretcher-frame is astretcher-bottom I), of canvas or other textile-fabric material, havinga central opening Q.

The shaft D is provided with a crank R, by means of which it is rotatedduring the raising or lowering movement of the stretcher.

The operation of the invention is as follows: By turning the crank inthe direction indicated by arrows the cords or chains O O are wound onthe shaft D to raise the standards J J and stretcher into the elevatedposition shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, the ratchetdog F preventingthe reverse rotation of the ratchet-wheel E. The patient is preferablylaid on the stretcher-bottom P in order that he can be raised or loweredwith the stretcher Without necessitating any change in his position orthe arrangement of the bedclothes. By providing the stretcher-bottom Pwith the centra-l opening Q a bed-pan or chamber-pot can be placedbeneath the opening, and the patient can relieve himself without theassistance of an attendant. By disengaging the ratchetdog from theratchetwheel the stretcher and patient can be lowered into the positionshown in Fig. l and can lie upon the mattress I-I.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A hospital-bed embracing in its construction'a substantially rectangularbed-frame,

IOO

a substantially rectangular stretcher-frame contained Within thebed-frame and vertically movable, a bottom for the stretcher-framehaving a central opening, standards depending from the corners of thestretcher-frame, i

a horizontal shaft journaled in the sides of l the bed-frameintermediate its ends, cords ln presence ofand adapted to be Wound onthe shaft, sub- Io stantially as specified.

Toronto, Canada, February 17, A. D. 1899.

HARRY L. PIPER. W. H. FOX.

connected to the ends of the bed-frame sup- M. A. WESTWOOD, pol-ting thestandards of the stretcher-frame, C. H. RICHES.

